I never once thought we would ever skip a country while traveling south and while being in Chiapas, the final stop in Mexico I had my sites set on Guatamala. It wasn't until after attending our Panama Posse seminars in December did I learn that pleasure craft don't go to Guatamala. The port is for commercial boats, has lots of soot that rains down on the boat and they just aren't equipped to handle our needs. If you want to go to Guatamala you go by land. Fortunately Marina Chiapas is only 30 minutes from the Guatamala boarder. Some friends we had met previously in Zihuatenaho had given us the number of what would turn out to be our best guide ever- Selvyn. So on February 13th once again Tony picked us up at the marina and drove us to the boarder where we walked across and Selvyn was waiting for us. As soon as we met him it was like reconnecting with an old friend. He was very familiar and happy and positive and we liked him instantly. As we started our trek our first stop was to pick up some local bananas to have for a snack. I don't know what type they were but they were excellent and we all ate several. Our first destination was the town of Quetzaltenango. When we arrived we walked to a nice vegan restaurant Selvyn had planned and the food was excellent and we met some Brits who were touring there as well. After lunch we walked around the town square visiting a church and the municipal building. Now being midday it was time for an afternoon beverage. Selvyn knew a local chocolatier who served hot chocolate beverages. These were similar to the ones we tried in Chiapas but a thousand times better and Jeff even proclaimed it was the best hot chocolate he'd ever had. A full day under our belts it was time to retire to the hotel for the evening.
Guatemalan Boarder
Men At The Boarder
Getting Bananas with Selvyn
Heading into Quetzaltenanago
Quetzaltenanago
Quetzaltenanago
Municipal Building
Buying A Local Drink on the Street
Church
Town Square
Chocolate Shop
Hot Chocolate
Bread Shop Near Hotel
Hotel Atrium
The next morning after our hotel breakfast Selvyn came and picked us up and we visited a couple of Mayan villages. We walked through the local markets and saw all the women dressed in their traditional clothing. We also visited several old Mayan churches. After a nice lunch we drove to Lake Atitlan where we would be staying for a couple nights. The grounds were gorgeous with beautiful lush gardens and our room overlooked the lake. It was the perfect place to celebrate Valentines day and we had a nice dinner at the hotel restaurant.
Fields of Mayan Village
Local Market
Mayan Church
Checking out the Fields in Mayan Village
Watering By Hand
Mayan Church
Mayans Outside Church
Indoor Market
Man Carrying Wood On His Back
Walking To Hot Springs
Hot Springs
Mayan Church
Statue To the Migrants Heading North
Lake Atitlan
Chicken Bus
Lake Atitlan
Hotel Lake Atitlan Gardens
Valentines Day Dinner
The next morning we woke up and had a wonderful hotel breakfast and then met Selvyn at the hotel's dock where we took a private boat tour to San Jose where we had a coffee tour and tasting. This coffee was excellent. The shop/operation was small and we walked through their gardens as they explained the process and showed us the equipment but the best part was the coffee after the tour. We even bought some beans to have on the boat. From their we walked the cute streets of San Jose then went to a chocolate maker and learned about the process of chocolate making and bought several bags of chocolate. The next shop we visited was a herbalist who taught us all about the power of medicinal herbs. She explained to us how a lot of Guatemalans can't afford to pay for medicine so they use herbs to heal instead. We walked all through her garden as she explained each plant and it's medicinal benefits. Further down the road we went to an all women's weaving CoOp where they are several shops all owned and supplied by women and once again we watched as one of the ladies gave us a demonstration of dying fabrics then then weaving them into clothing. It was very interesting. Just before lunch we hopped into a Tuk-Tuk and rode to the neighbouring village of San Pedro and ended up at an Israeli restaurant for lunch and then visited the cathedral. It was a full day of learning and exploring. The boat took us back to the hotel dock where we said goodbye to Selvyn for the night then hit the pool. Later we took another Tuk-Tuk into town for dinner.
Breakfast at Hotel
Boat Ride
Volcanons
Approaching San Jose
Dock at San Jose
Marimba Band on Shore
Selvyn Giving us Coffee Tour
Coffee Plants
Coffee Processing
San Jose
Local Painter
Her Mural
Herbalist Giving us Herb Lecture
Old Cathedral
San Jose
San Jose
Local San Jose Woman
Murals in Recreational Area
Local Women's CoOp Weaver
Riding the Tuk Tuk with Selvyn
Tuk Tuk Driver & Son
San Pedro From Tuk Tuk
Walking around San Pedro
Lunch in San Pedro
Back in the Tuk Tuk
Local Mayan Woman
San Pedro Church
Alter for Holy Week
Local Mayans
Mural
Local Woman
Back at Hotel
Helicopters on Hotel Lawn
Hotel Gardens
Hotel Pool
Relaxing in Pool at Hotel
Sadly the next morning it was time to check out of the hotel and say goodbye to Lake Atitlan. Selvyn picked us up and took us to an old Mayan ruins but unlike the others we have previously scene this one still did sacrificial offerings. Within the site there is a designated area where the leader sets up shop so to speak and people who have needs can make an appointment to meet with him and bring some sort of offering such as a live chicken to be killed or booze or anything of value to the leader and then they ask for their need and they stand there saying prayers, drinking booze and lighting things on fire and this goes on for over an hour and different people come and go throughout the day. It was unbelievable and at first we didn't think it was real. Like something out of a movie but fascinating to watch. From here Selvyn drove us to Guatamala City where we caught a plane to Flores. It would be the first time leaving Selvyn and being on our own. The flight was simple only an hour or so and when we landed in Flores a driver was there to take us to our hotel.
Leaving Lake Atitlan
Erupting Volcano
Mayan Calendar
Ruins
Sacrificial Site on Ruins
Ruins
Walking Through Ruins
Another Erupting Volcano
Our Plane to Flores
After a good nights sleep in our new hotel at 8a.m. the next morning a local guide named Oliver picked us up to take us to the famous Mayan ruins in Tikal National Park. The drive was about an hour and when we arrived Oliver expertly lead us around pointing out birds and monkeys and explaining all of the various Mayan sites and telling us what and by whom they were used for. The park is vast and the day was spent doing a lot of walking and climbing up the various sites. After about 4 hours and 17,000 steps we got back into the car and stopped at a restaurant on the way back for lunch. We said our goodbyes to Oliver and thanked him when he dropped us off at the hotel. We were pooped and decided some pool time was in order before walking to dinner.
Spider Monkeys in Tikal
Entering Tikal
Ruins in Tikal
View from Top of One Ruin to Another
Touring with Oliver
Really Big Tree
Stairs to the Ruin
Ruins through the Trees
With Oliver
Croc in Water at Tikal
Chillin at the Pool
Sunset in Flores
And just like that it was time to catch our flight back to Guatamala City where Selvyn was waiting for us. From the airport he took us both on a walking and driving tour of the capital city ending with lunch and then onto Antigua. Selvyn explained to us since it was Easter season every weekend there is a procession around Antigua where men and then women walk very slowly to music played by a marching band carrying an alter. We felt so lucky to be able to witness such a spectacular event. We wedged onto the sidewalk while the men's procession walked by and then the woman's and then we got dropped off at our hotel.
Guatamala City
Guatamala City
Downtown Guatamala City
Touring with Selvyn
Town Square
Really Good Bananas in Guatamala
Antigua
Cathedral in Antigua
Inside Cathedral
Easter Offering
Buying Local Fruit Drink With Selvyn
Locals Going to Procession
Carpets For Procession
Men's Procession
Alter in Men's Procession
Women's Procession
Women's Procession
Street Sweepers
Antigua
Town Square Antigua
Touring Church with Selvyn
Easter Offering
Antigua
Breakfast at Hotel
Antigua
Downtown Antigua
Volcano
Chicken Bus
Starting Volcano Hike
View From Volcano Hike
Erupting Volcano
With Selvyn on Volcano Hike
With Local Guide
View Near the Top
The Volcano
Volcanic Rock
Hiking Volcanic Rock
Guide Showing us Video of Volcano Erupting
With the Guides
Preparing the Marshmallow Oven
The Oven
Lunch at Aqua
Sadly our time with Selvyn and Guatamala was coming to an end and when we got picked up from our hotel in Antigua we made the long four hour drive back to the boarder where Tony from Chiapas Marina would be waiting for us to drive us back to the boat at the marina. Touring Guatamala was incredible and both of us really loved it so much and in a large part all due to our wonderful guide Selvyn.
Erupting Volcano From Hotel
Antigua
Monument to the Migrants
Vegan Lunch on Way to Boarder
The Boarder
so fun to read about Guatemala! i loved reading all the details. we love Selvyn!
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